Feed ramp insert for a firearm

ABSTRACT

A firearm assembly includes an upper receiver assembly having a front face and an aperture formed through the front face, and a feed ramp insert member removably coupled to the upper receiver assembly. The feed ramp insert member has a profile matching at least a portion of the aperture. The feed ramp insert member extends outwardly from the front face of the upper receiver assembly adjacent to the aperture. The feed ramp insert member is operative to interfere with incidental contact between a cartridge and at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/100,241, entitled “FEED RAMP INSERT FOR A FIREARM” and filed on Jan. 6, 2015, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This disclosure relates generally to firearms, and more particularly, to a feed ramp insert for a firearm.

BACKGROUND

A feed ramp is a precision machined piece of metal in a breech-loading firearm that guides a cartridge at the top of the magazine into the firing chamber. The feed ramp can be part of the receiver assembly of a semi-automatic rifle or semi-automatic pistol. After the rifle or pistol is fired and the spent cartridge is ejected, a fresh cartridge slides forwards and upwards along the feed ramp from the magazine into firing position. In the process of chambering the round, the cartridge incidentally contacts the upper portions of the receiver assembly prior to contacting the barrel extension feed ramps.

SUMMARY

According to an example embodiment, a replaceable hardened steel insert can be mounted into a rifle upper receiver assembly. The insert covers at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly, allowing a cartridge to feed into the chamber without contacting the upper receiver, thereby preventing wear on the upper receiver caused by chambering the cartridge. Further, the insert can be removed and replaced when worn, which extends the lifespan of the upper receiver in contrast to existing designs.

The features and advantages described herein are not all-inclusive and, in particular, many additional features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art in view of the drawings, specification, and claims. Moreover, it should be noted that the language used in the specification has been selected principally for readability and instructional purposes and not to limit the scope of the inventive subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are not intended to be drawn to scale. In the drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures is represented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a lower right rear perspective view of an example firearm assembly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a lower right rear perspective view of the example firearm assembly of FIG. 1 in an alternate configuration, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a lower right rear cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a bottom cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a top cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

General Overview

As mentioned above, while chambering a round in a semi-automatic rifle or semi-automatic pistol, the cartridge incidentally contacts upper portions of the receiver assembly. This contact has been discovered to cause premature wear in the receiver assembly, which limits the useful lifespan of the component. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved mechanism that, for example, has greater wear resistance, is easier to service, or both.

Thus, and in accordance with a set of embodiments, a novel feed ramp insert for a firearm is disclosed. In an embodiment, a firearm assembly includes an upper receiver assembly having a front face and an aperture formed through the front face, and a feed ramp insert member removably coupled to the upper receiver assembly. The feed ramp insert member has a profile matching at least a portion of the aperture. The feed ramp insert member extends outwardly from the front face of the upper receiver assembly adjacent to the aperture. The feed ramp insert member is operative to interfere with incidental contact between a cartridge and at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly. Numerous configurations and variations will be apparent in light of this disclosure.

For example, in some embodiments, the firearm assembly includes a fastener configured to secure the feed ramp insert member to the upper portion of the receiver. In some embodiments, the firearm assembly includes a feed ramp disposed between the front face of the upper receiver assembly and a magazine port of the receiver. The feed ramp is operative to guide a transfer of the cartridge from the magazine port into the aperture and toward a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm. In some embodiments, the aperture opens into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm. In some embodiments, the feed ramp insert member is formed of hardened metal. In some embodiments, the profile of the feed ramp insert member is semi-circular. In some embodiments, the profile of the feed ramp insert member is tapered outwardly away from the aperture. In some embodiments, the firearm assembly forms part of a semi-automatic rifle or a semi-automatic pistol.

As will be appreciated in light of this disclosure, some embodiments may realize benefits or advantages as compared to existing approaches. For instance, in some embodiments, the disclosed feed ramp insert can be formed by hardened metal that allows for significantly greater wear and abuse prior to exhibiting signs of wear than the upper portion of the receiver. This leads to increased reliability and longevity of the upper receiver and the life of the firearm. Further, should the disclosed feed ramp insert demonstrate signs of wear, the component can be replaced at minimal expense and further extend the life of the receiver, which is significantly more costly to replace than the feed ramp insert. Various techniques disclosed herein are in contrast to existing approaches where, for example, the cartridge directly contacts the receiver component, causing wear of the receiver, which then must be replaced when the upper portion becomes excessively worn.

In some cases, and in accordance with various embodiments, the firearm assembly can be configured, for example, as: (1) a partially or completely assembled receiver assembly and feed ramp insert member; a (2) feed ramp insert member with fasteners for securing the feed ramp insert member to a receiver; and/or (3) a kit or other collection of discrete components as variously described herein that may be used to practice one or more of the disclosed embodiments.

Structure and Operation

FIG. 1 is a lower right rear perspective view of an example firearm assembly 100, according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a lower right rear perspective view of the example firearm assembly of FIG. 1 in an alternate configuration. FIG. 3 is another lower right rear cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly 100 of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a bottom cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly 100 of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a top cross-sectional perspective view of a portion of the example firearm assembly 100 of FIG. 2. For clarity, the firearm assembly 100 is shown upside down in FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, and right side up in FIG. 5. The firearm assembly 100 includes an upper receiver assembly 102 and feed ramp insert member 104. In FIG. 1, the feed ramp insert member 104 is shown separately from the upper receiver assembly 102. In FIGS. 2, 3, 4 and 5, the feed ramp insert member 104 is shown attached to the upper receiver assembly 102. The upper receiver assembly 102 may be attached to, for example, a rifle (not shown). The upper receiver assembly 100 includes a front face 110. The front face 110 has an aperture 112 through which a cartridge can pass during chambering. The aperture 112 may, for example, be circular or substantially circular at the front face 110.

A feed ramp (not shown) can be disposed between the aperture 112 and a magazine port (not shown), which may, for example, be included in a lower receiver assembly (not shown) that can be attached to the upper receiver assembly 100. In some embodiments, the feed ramp insert member 104 is removably attached to the upper receiver assembly 102 using one or more fasteners 118.

The feed ramp insert member 104 can be made of hardened steel or other high strength material that is highly heat tolerant and wear resistant. The feed ramp insert member 104 has a profile 120 matching at least a portion of the aperture 112 in the front face 110, such as shown in FIG. 5. In an embodiment, the profile 120 is semi-circular, with a radius the same as or substantially the same as a radius of the aperture 112 such that the feed ramp insert member 104 does not obstruct any portion of the aperture 112. Such a radius may, for example, be large enough to accommodate passage of a cartridge through and along a longitudinal axis of the aperture 112 without obstruction or resistance, while having a small dimensional tolerance to prevent undesired or excessive lateral movement of the cartridge within the aperture 112.

As shown in FIGS. 2-5, when attached to the upper receiver assembly 102, the feed ramp insert member 104 extends outwardly from the front face 110 of the upper receiver assembly 102 (e.g., toward the aft end of the receiver), thereby covering at least a portion of the front face 110 of the upper receiver assembly 102. In this manner, the feed ramp insert member 102 is operative to interfere with, or prevent outright, incidental contact between the front face 110 and a cartridge moving along the feed ramp, while also guiding the cartridge into axial alignment with the aperture 112. In some embodiments, the feed ramp insert member 104 is a sacrificial component that is designed to protect the upper receiver assembly 102 from wear caused by chambering of the cartridge. The feed ramp insert member 104 is easily removable from the upper receiver assembly 100 for replacement. In an embodiment, the profile 120 of the feed ramp insert member 104 is tapered outwardly away from the aperture 112 along a radius of the profile, such as can be seen in FIG. 5, to help align the cartridge with the aperture 112 and guide the cartridge into the aperture 112.

As will be appreciated in light of this disclosure, the firearm assembly 100 may include additional, fewer, and/or different elements or components from those here described, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to any particular configurations or arrangements of elements such as those variously described herein, but can be used with numerous configurations in numerous applications. Further, while in some embodiments, the firearm assembly 100 can be configured as shown and described with respect to the various figures, the claimed invention is not so limited. Other suitable geometries, arrangements and configurations for various elements and components of the firearm assembly 100 will depend on a given application and will be apparent in light of this disclosure.

The foregoing description of example embodiments has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of this disclosure. It is intended that the scope of the present disclosure be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto. Subsequent applications claiming priority to this application may claim the disclosed subject matter in a different manner and generally may include any set of one or more limitations as variously disclosed or otherwise demonstrated herein. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A firearm assembly comprising: an upper receiver assembly having a front face and an aperture formed through the front face; and a feed ramp insert member removably coupled to the upper receiver assembly, the feed ramp insert member having a profile matching at least a portion of the aperture, the feed ramp insert member extending outwardly from the front face of the upper receiver assembly adjacent to the aperture.
 2. The firearm assembly of claim 1, wherein the feed ramp insert member is operative to interfere with incidental contact between a cartridge and at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly during chambering of the cartridge into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm via the aperture, thereby reducing wear on the upper receiver assembly caused by such incidental contact.
 3. The firearm assembly of claim 1, further comprising a fastener configured to secure the feed ramp insert member to the upper portion of the receiver.
 4. The firearm assembly of claim 1, wherein the aperture opens into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm.
 5. The firearm assembly of claim 1, wherein the feed ramp insert member is formed of hardened metal.
 6. The firearm assembly of claim 1, wherein the profile of the feed ramp insert member is semi-circular.
 7. The firearm assembly of claim 1, wherein the profile of the feed ramp insert member is tapered outwardly away from the aperture.
 8. The firearm assembly of claim 1, further comprising one of a semi-automatic rifle and a semi-automatic pistol.
 9. A method of preventing component wear in a firearm, the method comprising: coupling a feed ramp insert member with an upper receiver assembly of the firearm, the upper receiver assembly having a front face and an aperture formed through the front face; and attaching a fastener to the feed ramp insert member and to the upper portion of the receiver, thereby securing the feed ramp insert member to the upper portion of the receiver, wherein the feed ramp insert member has a profile matching at least a portion of the aperture, the feed ramp insert member extending outwardly from the front face of the upper receiver assembly adjacent to the aperture and being operative to interfere with incidental contact between a cartridge and at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly during chambering of the cartridge into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm via the aperture, thereby reducing wear on the upper receiver assembly caused by such incidental contact.
 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising chambering the cartridge into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm via the aperture and adjacent to the feed ramp insert member.
 11. The method of claim 9, wherein the aperture opens into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the feed ramp insert member is formed of hardened metal.
 13. The method of claim 9, wherein the profile of the feed ramp insert member is semi-circular.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein the profile of the feed ramp insert member is tapered outwardly away from the aperture.
 15. The method of claim 9, wherein the firearm is one of a semi-automatic rifle and a semi-automatic pistol.
 16. A kit comprising: an upper receiver assembly having a front face and an aperture formed through the front face; and a feed ramp insert member configured to be removably coupled to the upper receiver assembly, the feed ramp insert member having a profile matching at least a portion of the aperture, the feed ramp insert member extending outwardly from the front face of the upper receiver assembly adjacent to the aperture.
 17. The kit of claim 16, wherein the feed ramp insert member is operative to interfere with incidental contact between a cartridge and at least a portion of the upper receiver assembly during chambering of the cartridge into a cartridge chamber in a barrel of the firearm via the aperture.
 18. The kit of claim 16, further comprising a fastener configured to secure the feed ramp insert member to the upper portion of the receiver.
 19. The kit of claim 16, wherein the profile of the feed ramp insert member is semi-circular.
 20. The kit of claim 16, further comprising one of a semi-automatic rifle and a semi-automatic pistol. 